Improvement in car-couplings



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY MCKEE, OF OHANDLERVILLE, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT 1N cAR-coUPUNGs.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 43,219. dated June 21, 1864.

To all whom it may-concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY MGKEE, of Ghandlerville, in the county of Cass and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved (lar'Coupling, and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact de'x scription thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying` drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a side sectional view of my invention taken in the line a x, Fig. 2 Fig. 2, a plan or top view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts. l

This invention relates to a new and improved car coupling of that class which are termed self-coupling.

The object of the invention is to obtain a car-coupling which will be simple in construction, be certain to form a connection when the draw-heads of two cars are brought in contact, and be capable of being disconnected with thc greatest facility when required.

A A represent two draw-heads, which may be applied to the cars in the usual or in any proper way. The front parts of the drawheads are made of flaring form, and at ,cach side of each draw-head there is a vertical projection, ax, the front end s of which are rounded, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. The front parts of the upper surfaces of the draw-heads are inclined, as shown at a in Fig. 1, and the projections cx serve as guides for the links or shackles. In each draw-head there is fitted a vertical staple, lB, and these staples secure the links or shackles (l to the draw-heads. rlhese links or shackles are taper form, being wider at their front than at their back parts, as shown in Fig. 2, and the front ends of the links at their outer sides are made of double inclined form, as shown at bin Fig. l. In the iront part of each draw-head there is titteda hook, D, said hooks being curved or inclined backward, and having their shanks c iittedin vertical mortises or holes d in the draw-heads.

These hooks may be withdrawn when necesa sary. The links or shackles C are not designed to be detached from the draw-heads. They always remain permanently attached to them, and when the draw-heads of the two adjoining cars approach each other the outer ends of the link, in striking the inclined surfaces a of the draw-heads, are deflected up ward between the projections ax and over the hooks D, and the connection thereby formed. The outer ends of the links or shackles C can not abut against each other so as to produce any concussion. One link or shackle will always slide past the other on account of the inclined surfaces b. It' the draw-head of one car be a trifle lower than that of the other, the lowest link or shackle will throw upward the higher one. v

My improvement may be used with the o'rL dinary pincoupling, and this is a great ad vantage in case a car provided with such coupling should be required to be connected with one having my improvement applied t0 it.

The draw-heads may be 0In cast-iron and the staples B and hooks D of wrought-iron. In

case a disconnection requires to be made when there is a pull on the links or shackles the hooks D are withdrawn, which causes the former to be released. When there is no pull on the links or shackles, the latter may be simply turned up and off from the hooks.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Lct ters Patent, is- 4 The two draw-heads A A, provided with vertical projections X at each side of their upper surfaces, and with inclined front surfaces, ct, in combination with the removable or detachable hooks D, and the links or shackles G, all arranged substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

HENRY MOKEE. Witnesses:

M. M. LIVINGSTON, (l. L. IoPLIFF. 

